Bert Jansch
1965
Tracks
1. Strolling Down The Highway
2. Smokey River
3. Oh How Your Love Is Strong
4. I Have No Time
5. Finches
6. Veronica
7. Needle Of Death
8. Do You Hear Me Now
9. Rambling's Gonna Be The Death Of Me
10. Alice's Wonderland
11. Running From Home
12. Courting Blues
13. Casbah
14. Dreams Of Love
15. Angie
Amanda: Could it be? A country-esque album that I like? Damn, are the planets aligning again?
I have been a little bit stressed today and Jansch's voice is very calming and peaceful. He sounds like a major drifter which I always like in men. The songs are mostly about constantly moving from place to place. I pictured him strumming his guitar and camping, looking at the stars which was a very peaceful image for me. So maybe it is just what I needed today but I loved it.
RATING:
Brie: Well, it is no surprise that I love folk music. This was such a pleasant album to listen to. Bert Jansch's Scotish accent comes through at times, which makes him all the more charming. Also, his accent reminds me of one of my favorite musicians of all time, Alexi Murdoch, who is also Scottish and plays a similar style of guitar centered folk. Many songs sound very Nick Drake-ish. I can also find the similarity between Drake and Jansch that they both write music that is very melancholy, but in the sweetest possible way. One thing that is so impressive about this album is that it is recorded with just one guitar being played. I don't find Jansch as eloquent or extraordinary as other songwriters I have heard, but his songs are beautiful in spite of that. I mean, come on the guy has a some big names to live up to. One of the reasons that this album was so influential is that the guitar playing was so inventive that it inspired such iconic musicians as Marianne Faithfull and Niel Young.
RATING:
Jansch sings and plays the guitar very well, I can see why musicians especially might like this. However, only a few of these songs interested me, and not really that much. So I would say this album could have used either better songs, or more players and arrangements to make these songs more interesting.
ReplyDeleteStandout track: "I Have No Time"